Transesophageal exam (TEE) and catheter ultrasound probes may be designed with limited external dimensions to access internal areas of the body that are inaccessible to traditional external ultrasound probes. For example, TEE probes may be positioned in the esophagus to perform echocardiography. To maintain limited external dimensions, a flexible circuit may be coupled to a transducer array and/or other hardware in the distal end of an endoscope-type device. The flexible circuit may then be coupled to a second flexible circuit that may provide power and communication with an ultrasound imaging system located at the proximal end of the device. The flexible circuits may provide a compact electrical assembly that fits within a probe designed to access internal areas of the body.
Coupling flexible circuits may be difficult and time consuming as surface soldering of individual connections may be required. The soldered connections between the flexible circuits may have poor reliability. The conductive traces within the flexible circuits may crack or break if the flexible circuit is deformed beyond a certain threshold and/or is deformed repeatedly. These deficiencies in coupling flexible circuits may lead to poor reliability of TEE and catheter ultrasound probes in a clinical setting. It may also increase the expense and difficulty of repairing malfunctioning probes. For example, it may not be feasible to de-solder the flexible circuits, so if one circuit is malfunctioning, both flexible circuits and associated components may need to be replaced.